


A Holiday no one Celebrates

by Tojeaux



Category: Fayren, Robots - Fandom, Robots and Lace
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:34:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25483255
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tojeaux/pseuds/Tojeaux
Summary: A simple stroll through a cold night.
Relationships: Ratio/Valence, robot/human relationships - Relationship
Kudos: 15





	A Holiday no one Celebrates

**Author's Note:**

> A former Christmas present that I psyched myself out of completing. But is now complete! Please enjoy!

The city breathes a sigh of relief, awash with rain, explosives, and the smell of chaos. A woman cloaked in white and her guardian shrouded in darkness, only the brief flicker of red indicates his glance has turned towards his charge.  
  
“This part of the city is a blackout zone for a substantial number of reasons Ma- “He’s cut off by a piercing glare and silvery hair fluttering in the crisp winter air.  
  
“What’d I say about calling me Ma’am? Just say my name, it’s not like the Syndicate can here us all the way out here.” She spins around and the crackle of a lighter meets the tip of a fresh cigarette. Red smoke filling the air of the alley as they continue their walk.  
  
Zone B1-SFS, long abandoned after it was flooded due to an earthquake that tore through the Yamamoto group’s territory along the bay sinking half the city in 207X. Since then the area’s become somewhat of a buffer zone between Yamamoto and Azurai with skirmishing between the two syndicates happening in the parts of the zone that aren’t flooded nine months out of the year. How this particular roboticist found out about the three or so months the zone isn’t completely submerged is subject to another tale about a particularly aggressive creature with a complicated relationship to our roboticist and her guardian. Though, that doesn’t stop Valence from asking about it.  
  
“I find it unlikely he convinced you to come out here.” If there was an equivalent to a robotic eye-roll he’d need a new set of optics after hearing the story. Folding his arms in his bit of optimized contempt.  
  
“Well, when you’re hiding out from teams of hitmen the blackout zones are pretty convenient, and with none of my equipment things get pretty boring, but you already know how convincing he can be, like that one time he-“ She’s unable to stifle a laugh when she remembers a time when Criticality was ripping out a few of Valence’s circuits; watching the two of them get off to his flirtation with mortality.  
  
“I only agreed because his reasoning was strangely cogent.” His voice flush with embarrassment as his display involuntarily brings out a first-person view of his experience.  
  
“Yeah and I’m sure all that happened in the little bit of time it took me to get some coffee and nearly slip on your cum when I did get back to the lab.” Her laugh echoes off the waterlogged concrete. Rebar drips with fresh rainwater; their droplets forming into glassy puddles in the street. The zone was drenched in the sound of rushing water, all of it barreling back out to the sea after the recent rains. Only the sounds of metallic feet fought against the torrent along with the occasional deep intake of air that came with smoking.  
  
Valence knew better than to remind his charge about the dangers of smoking, even ones considered “healthier” by the standards of the time they were still always laced with little bit of something that set off various warning signals in Valence’s systems. His compulsion to speak up grew only louder¬ when she lit up a second cigarette, the brilliant crimson glow providing a mote of light as the two were strolling through an otherwise overcast night. The scene was serene as they stepped between broken sidewalks and walked down broken stairs. The zone ensured near absolute privacy from the everyday onslaught of holo-ads, Syndicate cameras and rivals. All of this allowed the roboticist to clear her mind, something much needed after this morning. She rubbed her arm, where, underneath her shirt a set of gauze swaddled a wound she was poorly concealing from Valence.  
  
“I can tell it is there you know. I can apply some-” Cut short again.  
  
“It’s fine! I..” A drawn-out sigh as her breath floats away into the darkness. “It doesn’t really hurt, I’m just tired. We’re almost there though. I just don’t want to think about the attack.” A longer breath this time without the cigarette, squaring up her shoulders as she looks directly at Valence; her gaze and smile alerting the robot to only one thing. Gratitude.  
  
He should have known this, she’s just happy to have him here for these quiet moments, that she didn’t need him to solve her problems. All it takes is a simple nod and another smile before they continue with their stroll. The clouds finally clear just enough to reveal a full moon resting high in the twilight with only a few stars to play companion. Valence looks up to observe the parting of the clouds and piercing moonlight; its rays of light coming down on this bleak and discarded part of the city. He was just about to call out to his charge, but when he looks down from sky, she’s nowhere to be seen.  
  
Alerts blare in his head and his radar sets off to try and locate her, but there’s so much concrete and rebar that the pings are ineffective. Underneath the plates of his exoskeleton his reactors spin up giving him a deadly red glow as he sprints off into the direction he last saw her walking. Turning the corner, he’s only met with a half-used cigarette. Overdrive kicks in as the slamming of a metal door is heard off the distance. His legs carry him to the door and his threat assessment alerts him to the possibility of a locked door, acting on directive the door crumples like so much wet paper. Sprinting up stairs after stairs until he reaches the top. Then all of a sudden, a ping to his left.  
  
“Did you really need to kick down the door?” His audio sensors recognize the voice instantly, her voice. His systems begin to power down in a manner not unlike whiplash. She watches as Valence’s shoulders slump in relief, a bit of a joke she likes to play on him. “Since you’re all warmed up why don’t you get your metal butt over here and keep me warm.” Instead of a smile he was met with a smirk. But all he felt was relief, she seemed to be back to her usual self.  
  
Moving along he took a seat in the set of bleacher seats above her’s when he finally realized where they were. His dark legs extend to envelope her smaller frame, providing a set of rails for her to lean against and enjoy the view. They were in the old stadium, but due to the flooding, water was trapped in the field to form a completely still reflective pond. Glittering moonlight danced across its surface as the two sat in quiet bliss. The moment lasted a lifetime when there was a small beep in Valence’s display. It had just crossed over to midnight. He could see that she was staring down at the artificial lake, her breaths were short from the hike here and she was ready to get some shut eye. Valence lifts her chin and whispers to her, voice low.  
  
“Merry Christmas Ratio.” His sensors knew immediately that he was able to get a reaction out of her as he watched her heart rate elevate.  
  
“You’re so old fashioned.” A short cheerful chuckle and a light kiss follow as she nestles into his chest to enjoy the night together.


End file.
